Chimpanzee Behavior

Chimpanzees are human close relatives inhabiting the tropical rain-forests, woodlands and grasslands in Africa. These great apes share 98% of their DNA with humans closer than mountain gorillas. Both the Bonobo and common chimpanzees are endangered with numbers deteriorating compared to early 90’s.

Chimpanzees can weigh up to 70 kilograms in the wilderness and even more when in captivity; the female chimps always weigh less than the males. The skin of chimpanzees gets dark as they get older and they do not have Silverbacks like mountain gorillas.

One of the most dangerous predators of chimpanzees are leopards because they also live both on land and on trees and humans on the other hand contribute to the decrease of chimpanzee population through encroaching on chimpanzee habitat, poaching for bush meat and pet trade. Chimpanzees are also being threatened by diseases such s Ebola virus.

Different types of chimpanzees display different types of behaviors; some sub species of chimpanzees express different behaviors from other species. Some of this can be seen below;

Behaviors of Chimpanzees

Chimpanzees are social animals that live in groups of 15 to 150 individuals having a definite hierarchy dominated by a male known as alpha male that dominates the whole group. Chimpanzees are highly territorial animals and they can become extremely aggressive is another group tries to come close to their territory. They always mark their territories clearly.

The female chimpanzees always leave their birth groups at adolescence while the males remain within their birth groups. The Bonobo species of chimpanzees is known not to be very violent, aggressive and rarely attacks. This species of chimpanzee is also known for its sexual receptiveness.

The common type of chimpanzee is known for being aggressive, viscous and dominating. This type of chimpanzee is also fond of attacking humans. One of the most common activities among chimpanzees is grooming and this involves cleaning themselves off the dead skin, parasites

Chimpanzees always build their nests in the evening before dark at around 7pm using different materials like leaves and tree branches. Chimpanzees use hand gestures, facial expressions, screams, drumming tree buttress to express their or communicate something to each other.

Chimpanzees can share food with one another and even cooperate during hunting for other animals.

Chimpanzees shape sticks and use them for collecting termites’ ants and insects in holes.

Chimpanzees are known to be very intelligent animals for example they can succumb to the use of human sign language. There was once chimpanzee that was able to communicate using over 250 signs for communicating to humans.

For unforgettable chimpanzee trekking encounter in Africa, visit Kibale forest national park in Uganda or Nyungwe forest national park in Rwanda. At Kibale forest national park, tourists also have chances of chimpanzee habituation. Chimpanzee habituation involves joining researches in their daily work of making chimpanzees get used to human presence so that they can be trekked by tourists this normally takes a period of two years.